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Goodbye Country Road: the story of Waimauku and Muriwai

by Graeme Robb

PB. 222 pp. 220x152. Illus. Mono.
ISBN: 9781067047702

Published by NorWest Heritage Society Inc.

B O O K   L A U N C H
Waimauku Memorial Hall, 
24 Waimauku Station Road, Waimauku
MON. 9 DEC.  2:00 - 5:30 pm
All welcome.

LIMITED PRINT RUN so order NOW to reserve your pre-launch copy.
Orders will be sent on Tue 10 Dec.

>> AN IDEAL CHRISTMAS PRESENT <<

$39.00
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More about the book

This book reveals the history of Waimauku, a small country village in Auckland’s north-west, created on the back of ancient kauri forests and sustained, at first, by the miracle of the railway and then the produce of the land. It tells how the village began, the first immigrant families, the gum diggers then the first farmers. They all survived without roads, power or communications. While fighting for a share of scarce funds from a struggling government they took matters into their own hands just to get the roads, bridges, schools and facilities they needed. There were family feuds, tragedies and scandals, and changing fortunes, then the changing world brought windfalls and setbacks for many.
The book looks at these characters who, through sheer determination, moulded the village into a thriving community, and the many events that turned the village into what it is today.

Muriwai Beach was only 10 km (six miles) away and the stories here change to wild surf, black sand, shipwrecks, the country’s first motor races, land owners, primitive roads, the first tourists and an ancient pa. Its story is also told here.

All residents and those who appreciate history should get this book. It brings the past to life.

  • Table of Contents

    The Waimauku and Muriwai area
    Waimauku Village, 1950s. Where you found people and places
    Chapter 1. Mâori arrive in Kaipara
    ......Ngâti Whâtua o Kaipara
    ......Te Kawerau â Maki
    Chapter 2. Getting around Kaipara in the 1820s
    ......The waka
    ......The travels of Samuel Marsden
    Chapter 3. Kauri and the destruction of the forest
    ......Kauri gum: an ancient treasure
    ......The legacy: No going back
    Chapter 4. The Europeans arrive
    ......Profile: Samuel Frost. Ararimu Valley, 1863
    ......Profile: Robert Annett. Waimauku, 1868
    ......Profile: Allan Kerr-Taylor. Waikoukou Valley, 1869
    ......Profile: Joseph Wilkins. Waikoukou Valley, 1869
    ......Profile: John Foster. Muriwai Falls, 1870
    ......Profile: Stanley Lester-Jonas. Waimauku, 1880
    ......Profile: James Fletcher. Waimauku, 1885
    ......Profile: William Morgan. Ararimu Valley, 1886
    ......Profile: William Moore. Muriwai, 1888
    Chapter 5. Flax
    Chapter 6. Kaipara’s sea of streams
    Chapter 7. The railway arrives, 1875
    ......The Waimauku station
    Chapter 8. Waimauku Village
    ......Foster’s Waimauku general store
    ......Billiards and hairdressing
    ......Bill Good’s pub
    ......The artisan
    ......The Coronation Hall / Waimauku War Memorial Hall
    ......St Martin’s, the little church with a big history
    ......Other denominations at St Martins
    ......The Waimauku Peoples’ Church
    ......The post office and the telephone exchanges
    ......Electric power
    ......Ernie Burns’ garage
    ......Cyril Tong’s bakehouse
    ......The great name change folly
    ......Gossip columns
    ......Victory bonds: Waimauku’s victory
    ......The doctor
    ......The RSA
    ......Bomber Galloway - a tragedy and a tribute
    ......The music makers
    ......Population size
    Chapter 9. The dairy factory
    Chapter 10. The evolution of Waimauku’s roads
    Chapter 11. Waimauku School
    Chapter 12. Sporting life
    Chapter 13. The Kaipara after the Treaty
    ......Wally Wikaira: a local identity in Waimauku
    Chapter 14. Farmers arriving in the 20th century
    ......Profile: The Wightmans, 1912
    ......Profile: The Houghtons, 1919
    ......Profile: The Robbs, 1937
    Chapter 15. Villages apart: Kumeu ascendant
    Chapter 16. Orchards and vineyards
    Chapter 17. Muriwai Beach
    ......Catherine Moore’s story, 1893
    ......Profile: Edwin Mitchelson. Muriwai, 1901
    ......The state of the Muriwai road
    ......Korekore pa
    ......Racing on the beach
    ......Fresh water, changing sheds and other luxuries
    ......Fishing at Muriwai Beach
    ......Muriwai House
    ......The Trans-Tasman cable
    ......Fighting in the dunes
    ......Sewage in the sand
    ......War games
    ......Surf life-saving
    ......The volunteer fire brigade
    ......Carnage on the beach, vehicles in the modern era
    ......Aftermath of the 2023 storm: Two tributes
    Chapter 18. Diary of a country kid
    Chapter 19. Endgame
    Notes